Prior to Friday afternoon’s game against the Brewers, Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein revealed more details about the plan to have Zobrist build back up to game readiness. On Friday, the 38-year-old will begin a Minor League assignment with Class A South Bend before being re-evaluated on Monday to determine the next steps.
Zobrist, who has been on Major League Baseball's restricted list since May 8 in order to focus on a family situation, will continue to move up the Minor League ladder throughout August. Zobrist will first get a handful of at-bats as a designated hitter before mixing in innings at second base and in the outfield in an "off and on" playing schedule.
"I don't think he'll play straight through," Epstein said. "I think he's going to take some time off in between these stints to continue to get his body in shape and continue to practice. And he's not going to come back as an everyday player anyway, so it makes sense to get him ready this way.
